


13 Willow Brook Lane

by princesslexi763



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop & Tattoo Parlor, Florist!Dan, M/M, No Spoilers, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Tattoo Artisit!Phil, pastel!dan, punk!phil
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-06
Updated: 2016-07-25
Packaged: 2018-07-21 20:05:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 14,758
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7401976
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/princesslexi763/pseuds/princesslexi763
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Dan Howell was 20 years old, his grandparent's died in a tragic accident that causes an unspoken chaos. Dan is gifted his grandparent's house and flower shop per their will. Beginning to realize he took up more than he could bargain for, he befriends the famous tattoo artist Phil Lester who's shop across from his own. As an unlikely friendship sparks up, other secrets and hidden words are revealed, leaving this small town shaking. </p><p>It's a flower shop and tattoo parlor au with a twist!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everybody! You might know me from the other story I am currently posting. I'm posting this one as kind of like an ice breaker for myself. Whenever i get writers block for the other story, i'll come back into this one and vice versa. I'm hoping to update this story once a week but i'm not good at keeping schedules. Nevertheless, i really hope you enjoy my spin on a flower shop/ tattoo parlor au. I love reading these types of stories so i decided to write one of my own with a slightly dark twist. Happy reading everyone! :)

There is a lot that I can say about this new town. The people are nice, the scenery is new, and everything here is great. But that still doesn't take away from the fact that the town is small; so much so that everyone knows everyone. Rumors are known pretty heavily around here. In the small time frame of two months that I've lived here, I've heard more rumors about the famed tattoo artist Phil Lester than anyone else.

I didn't exactly move to this small town by chance. In fact, I had never even heard of this town until I got word that my paternal grandparents had both tragically passed away. I'd seen them when they came up for holiday and I've seen them at family outings but I didn't know what they did for a living, much less where they lived. I guess at the ripe young age of 10, I just believed that they showed up out of thin air.

But this all changed when I was given word that they left something for me in their will. I was given a date on when I needed to report to a lawyer for the official reading and so I went. When I was there, I just kept thinking that they left me money or something to that effect. I just never realized that they left me a store: a flower shop to be exact.

            I knew _nothing_ about flowers. I could barely even tell a tulip from a rose if I'm being honest. So I had _no_ idea how this was going to work in the slightest. Let alone, how I was going to run a shop by myself at the age of 20.

            I was currently going to college for law and I was living at home with my brother and parents. I felt safe with what I was doing and completely abandoning that was going to be a major risk for me to do.

They also left me their house but I knew that I couldn't live in such a huge house by myself. It sat on little plot of land with neighbors surrounding it. It appeared smaller on the street but once I was inside, I knew that it was a lot more space than I could ever use.

            And yet, somehow, here I am, unpacking the boxes in this giant four bedroom, five bath, house that I didn't even need. I argued for days with my parents about how I thought it would be logical that I just simply sold the store and the house as a package deal and make money from it but they just shook their heads: telling me that that wasn't what my grandparents would have wanted.

            All of my belongings made this house look bigger than ever before. I had barely enough to fill the rooms so I left most of my grandparents old furniture to sit in the rooms collecting dust. I had no other way to settle into the house.

I hadn't even visited the store yet to see how that is like.

            But, it's been two months since I've moved into the house on 13 Willow Brooke Drive and honestly, I love it. Everyone has recognized me as “Dan Howell, the grandson of Rita and Norman, who ever so graciously took over their business after their untimely death.”

            Sadly, those were almost the exact words that everyone used when they saw me. I was even told by multiple people that I was a spitting image of my grandfather when he was my age. I don't know how believable that was but I took the compliment.

            But I always felt awkward walking the streets because I was one of the youngest people in this small community. Well, me and this Phil Lester anyway. I'd never seen this Phil guy though. I'd only ever heard stories about him.

            From what I heard, he's a very famous tattoo artist. But he's not one to cross. He has sleeves up and down both arms and he has facial piercings: two lip rings and an eyebrow piercing to be exact. He had dark black hair with blue fringe and he always wore black.

            The thing was, he didn't fit into this town at all but he still somehow is here.

            Today, though, I decided it was just as good as any day to venture out to the shop and check out what it's like. My parents bought me some plant books before I left to move here to help me out but I haven't had the time to go through them. I was going to just leave them on the counter in the store and hope for the best honestly.

            I got into my small little car and drove the two miles into the town square. I waved at the people around me, trying to just be friendly to everyone. I wanted to maintain a good impression and keep my grandparent’s legacy going.

            I finally found the shop and groaned internally at the name; **Howell’s Hydrangeas and Botanical** s.

            I didn't even know what a hydrangea was…

            I pulled up next to the sidewalk and shut my car off, looking around at the surroundings. And the first thing that caught my eye was the tattoo shop right directly across from the flower shop.

            The outside of the shop was red with black accents and it looked very intimidating. I was tempted to go over there and see what all the fuss was about when the door swung open and out stepped the very famous Phil Lester.

            He was holding an unlit cigarette between his fingers and a lighter in the other hand. He was wearing an all-black shirt with little white dots on it and a pair of dark, ripped, skinny jeans and studded boots. He looked over at me, catching my staring and I quickly turned my head embarrassed. He turned his head the other way too and disappeared by the side of the building.

            I shook off the feeling that he gave me, this uneasy and unsettling coldness that he gave off. I turned back towards the store and took a deep breath, taking in my surroundings. This shop was going to be mine. This whole thing was going to be my own. I really liked the thought of that now that I’m here.

            I pulled the key to the front door out of my pocket and headed up the step up to the doorway that read ‘closed’ on the sign. I questioningly looked through the door and noticed that there were a few lights on but I figured that maybe they were always on so I didn’t think about it.

            I went to hold the door to unlock it when I noticed that the door pulled open, unlocked, and I felt myself become uneasy. _Was someone else inside of the shop without my knowledge?_

            I pulled the door back and walked inside, instantly feeling my senses become overwhelmed by every known flower in existence, some that I didn’t even know. I looked around for a moment before movement caught my eye in the corner and I turned to see what it was.

            There was a blonde female rummaging behind a shelf, her hair tied up in a ponytail, a pair of yellow gloves on her hands, and an apron over her clothing. I squinted my eyes out of habit to focus on who she was, not knowing by a long shot, before I decided to speak, “Excuse me?”

            She jumped and I heard the clatter of a pot smashing against the tiled floor. I instantly ran over to her to help her clean the mess of dirt, plants, and ceramic off from the floors. She was quickly moving the plant to another pot as I leaned down and realized that I really had no fucking idea where anything was or how to even go about cleaning this, “Are you Norman and Rita’s grandson?” She asked, as she pushed me aside and began cleaning the dirt like a pro.

            “Yeah.” I said watching her, “It’s my first day visiting here and I thought I’d begin restocking the store but it appears to have had some loving given to it since they passed.”

            She quickly got rid of the dirt and the ceramic and brought over some paper towel, soaking up the muddy water before wiping the area again with a clean, damp, cloth and getting rid of that as well. She came back over to me and stood in front of my view, her hand outstretched, “My name is Louise. I’m sorry that we met this way, breaking your property and such.”

            “My name is Dan.” I said, shaking her hand gently before retracting my own.

            “I promise that I didn’t break into your shop,” She said putting her hands up, “I used to be an employee of your grandparent’s. I helped them when they needed it and when they passed, and I saw no one was around to water the plants and everything, I decided to use the key they gave me to come in here and make sure that their babies didn’t die with them.”

            “That’s so nice and thoughtful.” I said, “I’ve spent the last few months of my own getting myself all situated around here before I decided to come over to the shop. I just assumed it would be empty though, I never thought I’d be like this…”

            “Norm and Rita made sure this place was beautiful. Everyone I know would come into here and buy flowers from them all the time. I don’t know what it was about that but they just had a way to keep flowers surviving for way longer than the normal life span. Everyone said their roses lasted weeks instead of days.” Her face then softened and fell, “But I guess if you don’t need me anymore around here, I can leave and not be a bother.”

            “Do you know much about plants?”

            She nodded, “I went to school for this type of stuff!”

            “Then,” I said with a smile, “How about you stay around and teach me a thing or two? I know literally nothing.”

            She squealed and clapped her hands, “Oh, this is going to be so much fun! I’ll have another person around my age to work with. God, we can gossip and talk, and…” She suddenly stopped and looked around like she was making sure no one was standing there, “We can ogle Phil Lester across the street.” She then grabbed my wrist and said, “But let’s not begin with that, I have a lot to teach you so follow me!”

            I just laughed and let her lead me away. I could tell that Louise and I were going to be great friends already.

****

            I had just gotten through a crash course of different types of plants when Louise stopped for a break. She offered to take me out to lunch at a local café down the road but I told her we could just order pizza to the shop instead, so we did.

            The pizza came within thirty minutes and both Louise and I sat on the floor, talking about ourselves. I learned that she was married and had a daughter named Darcy. She even showed me pictures of Darcy on her phone and I couldn’t help but smile at the little bubbly girl that appeared on the screen.

            I decided to tell her a little bit about myself but I didn’t have much to tell. She asked how often I saw my grandparent’s and I told her it wasn’t often at all. I said how I saw them when they came to my house for holiday and how they came to family events. She went on to say how they were the sweetest people she’d ever met and I immediately agreed. They _were_ the most amazing people.

            But then the door rang out, signaling that someone had come inside. So I stood up, the pizza box in plain view on the floor, as I came eye to eye with Phil Lester, standing in the doorway. He had a bunch of magazines in his hands and he didn’t look happy.

            He threw the books on the counter and said, “Tell the post man to stop dropping your pansy ass magazines off at my shop.”

            “Great to see you again, Phil.” Louise said back with a sarcastic tone, “it’s always great to talk to you.”

            He glared at Louise and flipped her off, “Fuck off, Louise.”

            He paused the door open with a bought of force and I heard the crack as the door hit the other one, not doing any damage though. He ran across the street and back into his shop and I just stood there dumbfounded at what just occurred.

            I turned around and Louise rolled around, “That bloody prick. He can never say a kind word to anyone.”

            “Why is that?”

            She shrugged, “It’s just the way he is. He plays off the bad-boy persona pretty well if you ask me.”

            “But then why does everyone want him?” I asked confused, sitting back down onto the floor in front of the pizza box, picking up my half eaten slice.

            Louise shrugged, “I think he really has a heart of gold but just is afraid of someone cashing it in.”

            I cocked an eyebrow, “Excuse me?”

            She rolled her eyes with a laugh, “He’s afraid of people taking advantage of him!”

            I just mouthed the word ‘oh’ before taking a bite of pizza. She burst out laughing at me and hit my arm in a playful way before falling into a fit of laughs onto her back.

            Yeah, I am definitely loving Louise.

****

            I went home that night to the big empty house and I honestly had never felt so alone until now. I’d been in this house for two months and tonight was the night the homesickness was really beginning to take action.

            I crawled onto my couch, afraid of actually going upstairs to the room I’d been calling my own for these past sixty days. I suddenly got a feeling that someone was watching me and I didn’t like that. I never really did all that great on my own so this really isn’t helping anything honestly.

            I hadn’t had the cable man come yet so I didn’t have internet or basic television so I was stuck with just a phone and a computer that I couldn’t do much on. I was tempted to call my mom so I could have someone to talk to but honestly, that probably wouldn’t solve anything.

            I noticed it was still early in the evening so I decided that going for a walk might make me less unsettled. I grabbed one of my thin black jackets and slipped it on before heading out my front door, locking it behind me, and then walking onto the sidewalk.

            My house was separated by a big white fence surrounding the outside. There were small amounts of ivy climbing up the sides but they gave the house charm so I didn’t mind. My grandparent’s had the most amazing flower beds around but there was going to be no way that I could maintain that. I felt bad that the flowers would probably die.

            All of the houses next to my own were spaced out but pretty close. It was like a little suburban street honestly. I knew that in town, there were apartments because I had looked into leasing one but these houses had charm like no other. No two looked the same.

            I hadn’t realized how far I’d walked until I had reached the town center and was in front of the flower shop again. I looked into the windows and made sure everything was picked up. I was still peering through the window when I heard a voice yelling to me, “No one is stealing your flowers, Howell.”

            I felt the voice chill my spine and send goosebumps up my arms. I turned around and saw none other than Phil Lester, standing outside of the tattoo shop in the darkness with a lit cigarette hanging from between his fingers.

            “How did you know who I was?” I asked cocking an eyebrow.

            He laughed, so much so that I felt myself step backwards in shock and my breath escape my throat, “It’s not hard to figure out. You’re the grandson of the old couple who died.”

            “Yeah, I am.” I said, more like a question than a statement honestly.

            He laughed again, “You don’t have to be shy around me, pretty boy. You’re going to see me a lot more than you’d like.”

            He tapped his cigarette against the building and I watched the red ash fall to the ground. He threw the butt onto the sidewalk and stomped it out with his foot before waving me off and walking back inside his shop. I could see vaguely inside their and I noticed it was packed with people, I’m assuming they’re all waiting for tattoos.

            I just turned and walked off.

            I made a circle around the town center before I ended back up where I began. Back at the flower shop and the tattoo parlor. As I walked by, I couldn’t help but look inside again. I could hear music blaring outside of the doors and I couldn’t help but take note that the song was _Hysteria_ by Muse: which I fucking loved! I was tempted to open the doors and walk inside myself but I knew I didn’t belong in there and I shouldn’t try to.

            I kept walking, ignoring the feeling that someone was watching me again.

            I made it back to the house and walked inside. I grabbed a bottle of water from my refrigerator and headed up the steep steps to the second floor.  I walked down the hallway until I reached by room and opened the doors, noting that it smelled really musty in here and I needed to put some air fresheners out.

            I set the bottled water on my nightstand and stripped down into my bare body. I never slept with clothing on because I always felt suffocated by it. Crawling under the comforters, I snuggled into the bed before grabbed the water bottle and fumbling to open it.

            Just my luck, some of the water sloshed onto my comforter and I jumped up, setting the bottle back onto the nightstand before cursing at myself. Getting up, thinking no one could see me, I rushed to the adjoining bathroom to grab a towel to soak the water.

            I rushed back in and felt a rush of cold air circulate around me. I shivered and proceeded to rush over to the comforter and soak up the water. When I was satisfied that the drying water wouldn’t leave any harm to me or my comforter, I crawled back under them into the warmth and snuggled inside.

            Unaware that there were a set of eyes watching me as I slept that night…


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so i'm not totally in love with this chapter but i figured it would be okay to post. I've got a direction for this story but i want to draw it out as long as i can but i'm terrible at pacing. Hope you enjoy!

Laughter: it was all you could here in the store the next morning as Louise and I set up the shop.

           We weren’t anywhere prepared to where we needed to be to open but we were getting there. She was helping me get used to all of the different flowers and I was enjoying learning all the weird names for plants.

            I couldn’t help but notice thought how the tattoo parlor constantly had patrons walking in and out of it. For such a small town which such an old crowd, this was just unreal to me. I really just thought it was like an unrealistic thing: either that or Phil is _just that_ good when it comes to doing tattoos.

 I wouldn’t ever know. I never plan on getting a tattoo. Sure, I think they look cool on some people but I have such a small, lithe body that I feel like it wouldn’t suit me. On someone like Phil though, it works perfectly.

  Speaking of which, I’ve begun to take note in the fact that Phil is coming out for cigarette breaks more and more frequently than he had yesterday. And when he has one, he’s been staring directly at my shop instead of going around the side of his building like he had before.

           I don’t know why, but that bothered me.

            Louise noticed my tense nature when Phil stepped out the fifth time in the past three hours, “He’s just taking a smoke break, Dan.”

            I nodded my head, “Well, yeah, but why are they so frequent?”

            She shrugged, “Stress, to get away, maybe to ogle the new flower shop owner across the way.”

            I felt myself blush and I pushed passed her, “I doubt that he’s doing that.”

            She laughed behind me and I turned back around, facing her as I grabbed a plant. I don’t know why I had grabbed the ceramic pot but maybe I thought it would be for protection if she came at me with inappropriate nagging or jokes, “Why not, sweets?” She asked referring to myself, “You’re a cute little guy—“    

            “Never call me a little guy!” I said with another blush.

            “Fine, a cute little _man._ ” She said with a smile, “Besides, do you have anyone special in your life?”

            I shook my head, “I had a girlfriend for three years while I was in high school but we didn’t last.”

            Her eyes widened, “Oh…oh my. Did I get the wrong impression? I thought you were—“   

            “I’m bisexual.” I said with a hollow laugh, “I came out to my parent’s a few years back and they don’t care as long as I’m happy. But that doesn’t matter. Why are you saying Phil might be ogling me?” 

            She cocked an eyebrow and crossed her arms over her chest, “Why do you suddenly care? Think he’s cute?” 

            I shook my head, “God, no, that’s not what I’m saying at all. It’s just—how do you know what team he’s playing for?” 

            She smiled at me and winked, “I think you’ll be alright in that department.” She then walked over to me and took the plant from me, “Now, what is the scientific name of this plant?”

             I groaned and laughed with her as we walked to the back of the store to unpack more of the pots and plants from the back room.

****

            I took a lunch break after Louise so we could maintain a special flow with setting up the store. We were talking about how we were hoping to have the story ready to go by the end of the week, which is very much earlier than I had expected.

            I had no idea where any food places were around here, normally just having ordered pizza these last few days, so I decided to take down the name of the café Louise wanted to take me to just the day before.

            I found the café easy with the directions she gave me and I felt at home instantly. We had little hole in the wall cafes where I was from and this one looked identical to the one I was used to. I shared so many memories at places like these: cute little coffee dates, flirting with the attractive barista to get a free coffee before college, and spending all-nighters while working on assignments that were due the next day. I could see myself spending plenty of time here.

            Walking inside the small building, I pushed the door open and was greeted by the small of roasted coffee beans and heaven. I smiled to myself and headed inside. Looking around I took in the atmosphere and felt right at home.

            Going up to the register, it felt like second nature as I said the name of my drink: a caramel macchiato. The only drink that anyone needs to ever have. I then paid for a turkey pesto Panini and then waited for my name to get called.

            I was standing by the counter waiting when the doorbell rang and I instinctively turned my head to see Phil. I was beginning to feel uneasy because it seemed like the guy was following me every move. Everywhere I went, I saw him it seemed.

            Maybe that’s why there are so many weird rumors about him.

            Many say that he’s a serial rapist that moved to the town to hide. His real name isn’t Phil Lester, it’s just an alias. The second rumor I heard was that he was a creature of the night. He never slept and he was always up and seen walking around town at weird hours of the night. By far the weirdest I’ve heard is that he had broken out of mental institution and was deemed mentally insane.         

            Now, I don’t think any of those are true by any means but given what I’ve seen of him and his behavior, I wouldn’t doubt a few of those rumors. 

            My name was called so I grabbed my paper bag and my drink and walked over to a vacant table. I was maybe sitting there for two minutes when Phil slid his body into the booth and stared at me. I couldn’t help but notice that he reeked of cigarette smoke. His eyes were mesmerizing though: a bright blue that reminded me of the ocean. 

            “Thought I’d say hi to my new neighbor.”

            “You kind of already said your welcome when you almost broke the door to my shop yesterday.” I commented back, taking out my Panini and setting it onto the small paper plate they had given me.

            He scoffed and laughed at my remark, making that cold uneasy feeling tingle through my spine again. I didn’t like being around this guy: not at all.         

            “The door is made out of bullet proof glass. Not even a car hitting that at one hundred miles per hour could shatter that door.”

            “That’s not the point,” I said quite sternly, “That was still rude.”

            He looked up at me and smirked, his tongue showing slightly and I noticed he had a tongue ring, “Well, I’m not exactly the nice type, am I?" 

            I broke my eye contact with him and picked up my Panini, taking a sheepish bite, hoping that the longer I ignored him, the better chance he had of going away. But it was no such luck as he just kept sitting there, “What you want?” I asked in a low voice.

            He reached across the table and placed his index finger under my chin, moving my face up so I could see him again. I didn’t like how he put his hand on me…         

            “I wanted to say a proper hello. Didn’t you listen to me, pretty boy?"

            “Stop calling me that.’ I said through gritted teeth, “I don’t want to be called pretty boy.”

            He looked at me with a fake expression of pity, “Oh, that’s too bad, princess. No one gets their way around here and you certainly won’t either. Just because your grandparent’s were locally acclaimed doesn’t mean you will ever live up to them. Remember that, pretty boy.”

            The barista suddenly called Phil’s name, interrupting his speech.

            And so he disappeared and I didn’t see him in the café anymore.         

            I lost my appetite after that and stuffed my Panini back into the back and grabbed my drink, heading back out to the shop. I’d put this in the fridge in the back and take it home for dinner later. I didn’t want to eat after talking with him.

            He put a sour taste on my tongue.        

            When I got back to the shop, I told Louise about the encounter I had with Phil and she just gave me a comforting nod before telling me that he is someone that I’ll just need to get used to. She gave me the whole, ‘no one is ever a bad guy’ speech and how he’s just misunderstood. 

            Still didn’t give him a reason to talk to me the way he did…           

            I spent the rest of my day helping Louise repot some of the plants and then wash out the old planters. She said that we are ahead of schedule and she believes the shop can be opened in just a few days instead of the end of the week. 

            While I was figuring out inventory, what we needed to buy, and how much money we had to spend, the phone rang and I picked up in the most cheery voice possible, “Hello, this Dan from Howell’s Floral Ship.” 

            “Hello,” The male voice said on the other end, “When are you guys opening for business?” 

            “If all goes as planned, within the next few days.” I said, mindlessly drawing on my pad of paper with random doodles.

            “Okay, thanks for the information. See you soon.”           

            Then the caller hung up and I was left with a feeling of confusion. What was that all about? 

            “Dan!” Louise called from the floor, “Who called?” 

            “I don’t know. Some guy asking when we’d be open.”

            “Oh,” She called back, “That’s odd. Anyway, wanna go into the back and bring me out some potting soil?”           

            I dropped my pen on the paper and headed into the back room, ignoring that feeling that was washing over me again. That uneasy feeling that has been so heavily weighed on me over these past few days. It was something I couldn’t shake. I felt like I had eyes on me constantly and that I was being following. I don’t know what was going on or if it was just my paranoid self but I wasn’t okay with it.

****

            The next day was spent pretty much the same as the past two. Louise quizzed me at random times about plant names and I answered back with mostly right responses. I also noticed that Phil was still staring me like he had been during his cigarette breaks. He hasn’t tried to speak to me anymore though and I’m okay with that for the most part. I mean, he was being rude to me and I called him out. He’s probably embarrassed.

            Louise and I decided to head out to lunch together instead of each of us taking a break. We were far enough ahead in our work that we could afford to take an hour or so off from it. We were planning on opening the shop tomorrow and I’m really excited. Louise told me that she’s had people stop her in the street to ask when we’re opening up. 

            I locked the door on the way out behind Louise. Shutting it, I pulled the handle to make sure that it wasn’t unlocked and then turned to walk with Louise. Except, Louise wasn’t directly next to me. Instead, she was across the street, laughing with Phil as he smoked a cigarette. 

            Not wanting to, but feeling like I inevitably had to, I crossed the street and met up with them. Phil just gave me a-know-it-all smirk and Louise spoke, “See, Dan, I told you Phil is a good guy.” 

            Shit, not this please?!

            “You told her I was rude to you?” he asked cocking an eyebrow, “I didn’t hardly say anything. You were rude to me.” 

            I bit my tongue and didn’t say anything, “Phil wouldn’t hurt a butterfly, sweets.” Louise said in a comforting manner. 

            “Sure.” I replied back forming my lips in a tight line. 

            “Lighten up, pretty boy. I won’t touch you.” Phil said in a mocking tone, “Wouldn’t want to taint your innocence.” 

            I was left speechless that he would even have the nerve to talk to me like that! I was appalled! This wasn’t even okay…this was just wrong on so many levels, he’s crossing so many lines that shouldn’t be trotted near. 

            “How do you guys know each other?” I asked suddenly without thinking. 

            Phil laughed and looked at Louise, “We been friends over the past few years. She used to help me at my shop until your grandparent’s asked for help and she ditched me for them.” 

            “I didn’t ditch you for them.” Louise said hitting his arm, “I left because I made more pay with them and I knew more about flowers than I did tattoos.”

            “Not all of us can afford shit.” Phil said pointing at her with his hand that had the cigarette in it. I couldn’t help but look at the red end as the embers fell like little wisps down to the ground, “What are you looking at?”           

            I snapped from my thoughts and looked up at him, “Nothing. Come on, Louise.” 

            “Aw, what’s got you so flustered, pretty boy?”          

            I snapped at him, “Quit calling me pretty boy! That’s degrading! I don’t like it.”

            “And what’s got you all flustered now, princess?”         

            “Louise, come on!” I said, egging her to go with me now. She said a quick goodbye to Phil before turning to me and whispering.          

            “Dan, he was only joking.”

            “I don’t care. He should respect others boundaries and he crossed all of mine just then.” 

            I knew that I was pouting over something as stupid as Phil making up ridiculous ‘pet names’ to call me but I didn’t like feeling that way that his voice made me feel. He didn’t seem kind, he seemed _cold._ There was something about him that I just couldn’t even pinpoint. 

            Louise and I continued on to the find a restaurant to sit in for lunch. The place was a little ways outside of the town center and it was a hole in the wall diner but it seemed really nice. Louise even said that she hadn’t ever eaten food from here. 

            As we sat down and began to look over the menus that we had picked up on the way in, I noticed the door swing open and Phil walk in. I felt my mouth fall open and Louise turned around, waving Phil down to the table. 

            “Louise!” I exclaimed, feeling my cheeks burn with a blush. 

            “I invited him, Dan. It’ll be okay.” 

            But it _wasn’t_ going to be okay. Nothing would ever be okay with Phil fucking Lester sitting here. He and I can’t even get along so why she thought this was a good idea is beyond me. I quickly picked what I wanted to order and sat the menu down, grabbing my cell phone from my pocket and scrolling mindlessly on it.          

            I felt the weight of the booth’s seat shift down as he sat down next to me. The fucking guy sat down in the same seat as me. I couldn’t fucking believe it. I felt the feeling of another’s leg against my own and I looked up, seeing Phil staring at me with intent.

            “You gonna move over so I can sit or should I…”

            I quickly scooted across the seat until I was against the wall. I felt like I was going to die in that moment. I just wanted lunch to be done and over already and it hasn’t even begun. 

            “So, Dan, why are you always so upset around me?” He said suddenly, breaking every wall that could have been between us.

            I turned to him and cocked an eyebrow, “Are you seriously asking me that?” I asked angrily, “You’re rude to me! You call me nicknames that I don’t wish to be called and you can’t even take the hint that I want that to end.”

            “I think it’s pretty clear who the rude one is…” Phil said pointing his finger from crotch up to my face, “It’s pretty obvious right now.” 

            I rolled my eyes, “Why can’t you just leave me alone?”           

            “Why can’t you handle selfless flirting?” He said back suddenly and quickly, “Have you never been flirted with, Dan?”

            I was taken back by what he said. I had no words to say to him and I looked up at Louise for an answer but she couldn’t say anything to me. Her eyes widened and she just looked at me like she had nothing to say either.

            Phil’s lips suddenly curled up in a smirk and he looked down at the table for a minute, “You are oblivious.”

            I didn’t say anything.

            The rest of the time, I stayed silent. If Phil or Louise asked me something, I’d answer with a one word response. I fiddled with my food, suddenly losing my appetite. I kept taking my fork and pushing around my fries that came with the burger I ordered. I had taken two bites out of the burger before feeling like I was going to throw up all over the table.

            Louise noticed my absence from the conversations but she didn’t mention it. I could just tell it in her facial expressions. Phil didn’t notice at all and acted like nothing had even happened. When I saw that Louise was asking for the bill, I asked Phil to let me out of the booth and I walked off to the bathroom.

            I pushed the door open, taking a few deep breaths to calm down my anxiety from the situation. I didn’t even know Phil but I could tell that I _hated_ him. I wanted nothing more to do with him. I didn’t even want to see his face.

            But my luck wasn’t working in my favor today because the door suddenly opened to the bathroom and I watched as the black haired male entered. He had a smug look over his face as he walked inside the small two stall room.

            “Why are you following me?” I asked, my chest tightening. 

            He shrugged his shoulders, “I guess I enjoy being around you.” 

            “The feeling isn’t mutual.” I snapped back.           

            He was suddenly close to me, his body hovered over my own. Before I knew what was happening, his hands were on my hips and I grabbed his wrists, trying to get him to move from me, but he wasn’t budging, “You’re really fun to play with, pretty boy.” He said, his face leaning close to my own. 

            I quickly turned my head the other way and felt myself wince, “Stop.” I breathed out. 

            And then I felt the absence of his hands as he took them away. I turned back to him and looked at his face finally. There was something about his eyes that was hard to escape. I was mesmerized by them actually. They were the deepest shade of blue that I’ve ever seen. 

            I felt his breathing on my ear as he leaned in, his mouth just barley touching the tip of my lobe, “One day, you’ll not be able to resist me. And when it happens, you better be prepared.”

            He pulled back, his hand suddenly lingering on my jaw as he smirked at me and walked out of the bathroom. 

            I stood inside of the small room for a few minutes while I gathered my thoughts. 

            When I finally walked out, Louise was sitting by herself and Phil was gone. I found myself asking where he was and she looked at me with a puzzled look on her face as she said that he left almost ten minutes ago and I’d been in the bathroom for about fifteen minutes.

            I finally just shook my head and asked her if we could leave.

            My mind was a cluster fuck of emotions right now. 

****

            While were at the store, we finished up the last minute details before deciding that tomorrow would be the day that we opened. Both Louise and I were content that our hard work had finally been finished. I was nervous about opening this shop after the legacy my grandparent’s left but I was also excited about being able to do this too. It’s a new experience that I couldn’t wait to enjoy.

            Louise got a call from her husband Matt while we were finishing up re-potting the Aloe Vera plants. She got word that her daughter Darcy had fallen down the stairs and they thought she might have a broken arm. She was panicking so I told her to go. She insisted that she could stay but I told her family was more important. 

            So I spent the last few hours finalizing everything before walking out of the door and locking it behind me. When I turned back around, Phil was just walking out of his parlor, closing up the doors on it as well. I hadn’t seen him lock up and close the shop since I’ve been here so it must have been a slow day. 

            I started walking fast, hoping that he didn’t notice me but he did. And of course, he yelled out my name, “Dan!”

            I turned around and was ready to say something snarky but I noticed he had a changed expression on his face. He didn’t appear the same as he had this whole day. He ran across the street over to me and caught up to my slow walking.

            “Can I walk with you?” He asked softly, much gentler than I’d ever heard him before. 

            I was going to say no when I figured that it couldn’t possibly be doing any more damage than had already done, “I guess.” 

            The first few feet were silent between us. The only sound I heard at one point was just the buzzing of a street lamp over us. He finally broke the silence between us when we turned a corner onto my own street, which I hadn’t even realized we had walked to, “I’m sorry for not respecting your boundaries earlier.” He started, “I was way out of line. Sometimes my mind speaks words that I don’t want to say and shit like earlier happens.”

            I really didn’t want to accept his apology but I suddenly felt my mouth say that words, “It is okay.” In a muttered voice towards him.

            He stopped suddenly and I stopped with him, thinking that this was his place right behind us. He smirked at me and then said, “Louise mentioned to me that you guys were opening your shop tomorrow and I was wondering if I could help you guys out in the mornings. I mean, I don’t do anything before my own shop opens so I thought maybe I could help you guys out.”

            In my head, I wanted to say, ‘no’, but I found myself saying okay to that. And then he smiled at me, a big shit eating grin, before I was suddenly drawn to him and our lips were clasped together in a frantic kiss.

            I didn’t react to him at first. I was taken aback by what had just occurred but I couldn’t stop myself from leaning into the kiss. But when I realized that I was kissing Phil Lester, the same guy that had degraded me earlier and broke my boundaries, I pulled back and looked at him in total shock.

            He just smiled at me and I felt my hand cover my mouth as I ran around him and hurried to my own house. 

            Unaware that there were two sets of eyes watching me run home…


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm honestly really enjoying writing this story so i'm bumping out these chapters a lot faster than i had expected. Now, before any one says that the chapters are moving along fast and the story is moving along, don't believe everything you read. Be grateful for the little amounts of fluff i'm including because it's not going to stay and before you know it, you'll be begging me to bring this side back! So enjoy it while you can :) Enjoy!

I had trouble being able to comprehend the fact that the man who I had just kissed, was also the man that I had found incredibly rude just twelve hours before. I laid in bed that night, my heart beating through my chest and my palms sweating under the blankets.

            I rolled over under the duvet and noticed that my clock read 2:38 am, and it was at that moment that I had just realized that I had laid awake for the past few hours thinking about Phil. Now, of course, I’m not one to just crush hard on people, especially people who made me uncomfortable.

            But that’s the ultimate thing! I don’t _believe_ that I could be crushing on Phil. Sure, I blushed when he called his pet names for me ‘flirting’. And maybe I _had_ returned the kiss but it had to be because I was caught off guard by him.

            I also haven’t been kissed in quite a few years…sadly. I had a long term girlfriend in high school, we dated for nearly three years actually, but then it ended when we both realized that we had become better friends than lovers. It was also the time that I began to think about the possibility of dating males as well.

            Now it’s not like I hadn’t ever thought about being romantically involved with another guy, it’s just that I hadn’t been given the opportunity before I found my girlfriend. So once we ended, I kind of liked the idea of maybe finding a nice guy to be with. But I wasn’t totally closed on the idea of dating another girl, in fact, I’m still very much open to it.

            I guess what I’m getting at is that Phil was the first guy I’ve ever kissed and I’m a little taken aback by it. I guess I’m just a romantic at heart and I thought my first kiss with a guy would be one where we were sitting on my couch or we were standing in the front door and they leaned in and we shared a passionate lip lock. Not a forceful grab to the hips as our lips as clashed together with no time to react.

            And now, being the type of person I am, I’m overthinking all of this and putting myself in an existential crisis at two thirty in the morning.

            Thinking of Phil, I couldn’t help but remember the way his blue eyes looked whenever I saw him: the deepest blue that I’ve ever seen. And then his piercings, I was appalled by them at first but now, looking back at them, they’re quite attractive. He wouldn’t have ever been my type of guy but suddenly, he is _oh_ so my type of guy.

            And God, I’m so stupid for allowing myself to think like this!

            I _don’t_ like Phil!

            I _don’t_ like Phil!

            God Damnit, I like Phil…

            I huffed to myself and turned onto my side, forcing my eyelids together. I just needed to sleep and not think about any of this anymore. I’ll give myself a stroke if I do so…

            Eventually, sleep succumbed my body and I was left in a limp heap as I dreamt:

            _His lips were on my neck, sucking onto the tender flesh. I gripped my nails against his back, arching myself into him as he sucked harder, surely leaving a mark. I moaned, scratching my nails up and down his back. I found myself moaning out a filthy porn star moan as he let go of my neck and his lips moved to my jaw, peppering the line with kisses. Then his lips were suddenly on my own and I was moaning into his mouth._

_I suddenly found myself straddling the man, my knees on opposite sides of his hips. I was rocking back and forth subtly, aching for a friction that just wasn’t quite there. I picked my head up slightly, my lips hovering above his own as I breathed out, “Touch me.” I whispered against his lips._

_“You can’t always get your way, princess.”_

_My head suddenly snapped up and I made eye contact with the stranger pleasuring me. The azure eyes stared into my brown as I gasped and fought off the feelings that were gushing throughout my blood._

I awoke with a gasp, sweat pouring out of my pores and soaking the pillow underneath me. I was sweating profusely…and painfully hard. I had just had a wet dream about Phil and I needed so desperately to just relieve myself.

            I wasn’t going to think about Phil as did so though. I am refusing to do so.

            But as I lowered my hand under the blanket, grasping my erection in a firm grip, stroking up once and feeling the precum slick over the skin, my mind instantly went to the blue eyes that were staring me in my dream.

            It only took three strokes before I was arching off from the bed and moaning out, “Phil!”

            I came hard over my stomach and I instantly felt spent and exhausted. I lazily reached around until I found a tissue on my nightstand. I grabbed the tissue and wiped off the sticky substance, throwing the dirty tissue onto the carpet. I instantly turned on my side and for some reason, as I fell asleep, I imagined a set of arms wrapped around me.

****  


            Taking the silver key into my hand, I unlocked the door and turned the lights on, the shiny floor illuminating in the fluorescent light. I smiled and breathed in the scents of all the plants: today was the day!

            I felt excited as I flipped the sign on the store from closed to open and waltzed over the counter and began fixing the stacks of papers. I was feeling really confident that I’d have at least a few costumers today and I hoped that for the sake of everything, this wasn’t a total fail in my part.

            Louise had called me that morning and said that she had to stay home with Darcy to watch her and I understood completely. Family came before anything, I realized that rather quickly. My family never turned their backs on me and I wouldn’t ever turn my back on them. Family is forever…

            The door chimed and I turned around, ready to greet the first customer of Howell’s Floral Shop (I changed the name but let’s be honest, it was for the better). But instead, I was greeted by the man who has been plaguing my thoughts so much lately.

            He was wearing a short sleeve button down shirt, blue with white dots, and I was able to see his arms in full. Both had a sleeve of tattoos but they all appeared to have a meaning. And for some unknown reason, I found that ridiculously attractive.

            He had a smirk on his face as he looked at me, “You told me I could come and give you some help and I have a few hours before I have to open my own shop so…”

            I clapped my hands together, possibly a little too enthusiastically, and smiled, “Oh, yeah! Um…I can teach you how to repot plants.” I said quickly, “A few of them could use a new pot so come on.”

            I motioned for him to follow me as I weaved through the aisles until a found a shelf of mums. I pointed to them and spoke, “So, we’ll need to put these into a new pot. It shouldn’t be that hard but we have some time so let’s do it.”

            Phil cocked an eyebrow at me but didn’t say anything. He bent down and pulled the pot from the shelf and I cringed at the way the ceramic clanked on the tile: I thought for sure he cracked the pot but after some quick examination, I noticed it was totally fine.

            After showing Phil want to do, I walked back to the front in case someone came and waited by the counter. I was carefully flipping through a magazine on home living when I heard a loud shatter followed by the words, “Oh shit!”

            I sprinted to where Phil was and gasped as I noticed that there were two broken pots mingled together on the tile. Pieces were everything and buried by soil. I looked up at Phil who had a genuine sympathetic look on his face, “What did you do?” I asked.

            “I honestly don’t know. I went to grab the next pot and both fell at the same time.”

            “Those are really expensive, Phil!” I said beginning to get angry, “What the hell, man?”

            He looked up at me, “Listen, okay, I don’t have much money on me but I can offer you something in a tradeoff.” He took a deep breath, “I can give you a tattoo of equal value that will make up for the cost of these.”

            I felt anger spike through my body, “No!” I said quickly, and loudly, “I want you to give me money for what you broke. I don’t want a stupid tattoo.”

            I was suddenly pushed against the back wall with Phil against me, his hands holding me in place, “Listen to me, pretty boy,” He said biting off his words, “No one around here ever gets what they want. You have to suck it up and move on. So take my offer or I won’t pay for any of this.”

            I was left speechless and he took advantage of that by speaking again, “Damn, Howell, just like after last night. You can’t even speak. Maybe I should just kiss you again to get a rise out of you.”

            And his lips was descending towards my own. I felt the soft feeling as they pressed gently against my own. It was barely there and felt like a brush. But then it was deepened and I found myself kissing back against him. I never thought I’d do that again if I’m being honest.

            Then he pulled back and smirked at me, “I told you that once you realized what I am, you wouldn’t be prepared. Seems that I have you hooked around my finger, princess.”

            “Not true.” I spat out, knowing it was wrong and a lie.

            He smirked at me, “See you at my shop at nine o’clock tonight. We’re doing the tattoo tonight, it’s my only time I’m free.”

            Unsure of this, I was hesitant to say anything but I finally found myself saying, “Okay.”

            He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to my cheek before backing off, “We should probably clean up that mess now.”

            My knees buckled and I leached forward accidently. He grasped my waist by putting his arm around me, “You okay?” he asked, genuinely worried. I nodded and he smiled, “I love when I leave them so they can’t even move.”

            I rolled my eyes at the sexual innuendo as I walked over to the mess that Phil had made and watched as Phil disappeared and came back with a broom and dust pan.

            Maybe I could get used to this after all.

            And maybe I was already starting to feel okay with the way Phil was acting. I don’t know why, but something tugged at my heart and I found myself not wanting Phil to leave.

            But he left some time after nine that morning to go and open his shop. He told me to come over there once I closed up so he could do my tattoo. I wasn’t really okay with getting a tattoo but I figured that if he was doing it for free, I might as well get one.

            Most of the day was quit. I had one phone call asking if I sold this plant that I’d never heard of and then as soon as they hung up, I realized they were asking if I sold marijuana but they were just giving me nicknames for it. I rolled my eyes at their call, pulling it off as some type of a prank.

            It was at around five that night, as I was cleaning up, when the door rang and I looked up from my spot and noticed a man with curly brown hair enter the store. I took a deep breath and walked over to the counter, “Hello and welcome to Howell’s Floral Shop!” I said with a beaming smile.

            The man smiled back and stuck his hand out, “Hi, my name is PJ. I was a valued customer of your grandparents.”

            “Oh, really?” I asked with a smile.

            He nodded, “I came here all the time! I used to get all of my flowers here. Speaking of which, it’s my fiancés birthday tomorrow and I wanna get them a bouquet of flowers. Can you help me pick them out?”

            I nodded and smiled, “Sure thing! Follow me!” I said, walking over to the cooler where I kept the flowers so they didn’t wilt in the heat.

            I smiled and looked at him, “Where they your first love?” He nodded his head, “So, we’ll incorporate a few lilacs into the bunch: they literally mean a first love and honestly are one of my favorites. Next, you should add red and yellow tulips. The red tulips mean a declaration of love and yellow mean hopelessly in love. We’ll add a couple baby’s breath for good measure, and I’ll wrap them up for you.”

            I gathered all of the flowers into my hand and walked back over to the counter. I carefully wrapped their stems and put them into a water pack and taped a package of food onto the outside. I handed them back to PJ and smiled.

            “Thank you so much!” he said happily, “I would have never thought of any of those. And they all look and smell so amazing! How much do I owe you?”

            I looked down at my paper and realized that I didn’t follow _any_ of the prices that I had originally planned out. So I went in between two and said, “$12 please.”

            He fished out his wallet and handed me a ten and two ones. I put them into the cash register and printed off a receipt for him. I handed the piece of paper to him and he stuffed it into his pocket, “You’ll definitely be getting my business.” He said before waving goodbye and walking out of the store. I smiled at him and waved goodbye.

            I was never happier to have something like that happen.

            I was actually going to make it in this!

            The next few hours went really well. I got some older couples and a few younger ones. But the highlight of my day was when a young couple by the names of Emma and Matt asked me to do their flowers for their wedding in two months! I got so excited that I actually yelped when they told me which led to me being embarrassed but them laughing. I wrote down their favorite colors and flowers and then suggested some flowers which allowed them to choose their types.

            They even told me they would be willing to pay me a big chunk of money for my service to them. They explained that they were supposed to have my grandparent’s do it but since they couldn’t, they got worried they would have to find someone else. So they were really happy to have me do them instead.

            And I couldn’t be happier for that too.

****

            I locked my store up at nine that night and headed over to Phil’s shop. I crossed the street and stopped before I went into the shop. I was very hesitant because I felt so out of place. But then the door opened and Phil looked at me.

            “You going to come in?”

            I gulped and then smirked, following him inside of the shop. I was instantly taking back by the way the inside looked. The walls were red with white stripes. There was a black border around the edge as well. When you first walked in, you were greeted by a desk with a young female sitting there.

            She asked for my name but Phil waved her off and grabbed my wrist in his hand and pulled me behind him. I was taken into this back room where the name ‘Phil’ was scribbled in calligraphy on the all black door in white paint. Inside was the infamous black chair and all of his equipment.

            “There are others that work here as well?” I asked stupidly.

            He nodded with a laugh, “Yeah, my friend Cat, the girl out front, does piercings, and my friend Marcus does tattoos in the room next to this one. He has a client right now. I can do both piercings and tattoos but I prefer tattoos. For some reason, I’m terrified of needles.”

            “But yet you have all of those.” I said, pointing to the multiple rings throughout his face.

            He laughed, “I know how it looks.” He pointed to the chair, “You can have a seat.”

            I slowly sat down onto the black leather seat and felt myself stiffen. This was it. This was actually going to happen, “How much were those pots I broke?” he asked, opening a black book that he pulled from somewhere I didn’t see, flipping through the clear coated pages.

            “About $125.” I said in a quiet voice.

            He looked up at me and nodded his head, “In my prices, that will give you a tattoo the size of my palm. So I found the tattoos I have done that are about that size and if you find one you like, I can get it ready for you.”

            He handed over the book and I looked down, instantly feeling my breath be sucked out of me. These were some of the best tattoo’s I have ever laid eyes on! They were so detailed and looked so real. I couldn’t even imagine that a tattoo could look that way but they did.

            And one in particular caught my eye. [It was a complex compass that was on this person’s chest](http://cdn3.sortra.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/compass-tattoo-design06.jpg). But I knew I’d put it on my shoulder blade on my back. I knew it instantly that I wanted this tattoo.

            I looked up at Phil and pointed at that photo, “I want this one.” I said.

            Phil smiled at me and nodded, “Sure thing, pretty boy. I’ll go draw this up quickly and I’ll be back in a few. In the mean-time, sit back and relax. Don’t stress about it. Tattoo’s don’t hurt, I promise.”

            He winked at me before exiting the room and I was left there by myself. I looked around at the surroundings and felt myself become extremely nervous. I’d never thought of myself as a tattoo person before and now, here I am, getting a tattoo from Phil.

            This was all becoming too real too fast.

            I began to over think of everything that could go wrong and I felt myself begin to experience an anxiety attack. I felt my breathing quicken and my chest tighten. I grasped onto the sides of the chair and rocked back and forth slightly, trying to calm myself.

            Then the door opened and Phil came back with a piece of paper in his hand. He looked at me and I saw his eyes instantly lace with worry, “Are you okay?” He asked me, setting down the paper.

            I didn’t answer.

            “Dan, answer me. What’s going on?”

            “I’m nervous.” I finally said, “And my anxiety is through the roof.”

            He reached forward and put his hand on my shoulder, rubbing gently, “It’ll be okay. I’ve done so many tattoos. I promise that you’ll be in amazing hands.”

            I nodded at him and tried to smile, “Okay.” I finally got out of my mouth.

            He smiled and looked at me, “Where do you want it?”

            “My back shoulder blade.” I answered, “The left side.”

            He nodded, “Remove your shirt for me.”

            He pressed a button on the chair and it was suddenly laid flat, “And lay down on your stomach.”

            I quickly removed my shirt, feeling self-conscious of my stomach. I covered myself with my arms before I laid down on my stomach and hissed at the cool touch of the chair, “I’m going to clean the area and then apply the stencil. It’ll just take a moment.”

            I nodded and tried to relax as I heard the sound of gloves snapping onto flesh and then I felt the cold touch of the disinfectant. I hissed out and cried slightly and he laughed, “The anticipation is the worst.”

            I smirked against the seat before I felt the coolness get taken away and I heard Phil say, “Okay, so you want it on the bone and honestly, that might hurt a little bit. But if you begin to feel any pain at all, yell my name and I’ll stop for a moment. You ready?”

            “Yes.” I said, shutting my eyes as I heard the buzz as the gun was turned on.

            The sensation of getting the tattoo wasn’t at all painful. In fact, it was comforting. It felt like I was getting a deep massage and I enjoyed that actually. Before I knew it, I was asleep on Phil’s chair as he finished up the tattoo.

            When he was done, he woke me up and I opened my eyes to see Phil standing in front of me, a smile on his face, “It’s all done.” He said with a smile.

            “Really?” I asked, beginning to stand up but feeling a sudden deep pain that I just couldn’t explain, “Ouch!”

            He laughed, “The aftercare hurts the worst. But I’ll help you out.”

            I just smiled at him and blushed as he helped me get my shirt on over the bandage. Once my shirt was on, he looked at me and leaned forward, catching my lips into a kiss. I found myself pressing back in an attempt to feel it even more.

            I found myself bringing my arms up and wrapping them around his neck, holding him closer. His arms found a way around my waist and I smiled into the kiss before continuing it. He suddenly pulled back and I felt the sensation of lips against my neck and I gasped, moaning out as he sucked on such a sensitive area. He was going to leave a mark and I knew it. I could feel it beginning.

            He pulled away and licked against the area before moving back up and capturing my lips into a harsh kiss again. I felt myself begin to feel breathless and I pulled back, breathing heavy against his lips. He smirked and pressed a quick peck against my own and I felt the cold rings in his lips for the first time ever. I liked the feeling. It was addictive with Phil.

            I opened my eyes and found his blue eyes staring back at me.

            And without thinking, I said, “Wanna come back to my place?”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Welcome to the new chapter of this story! I'm really satisfied with it! I mean, prepare for a suffocation of fluff and a little bit of sin, but enjoy it while you can. Because when this story takes a turn, you're all going to be begging me to bring this side back. I'm basing this part over something I did with my friends the night i graduated high school--not the sin/ skinny dipping part--but the jumping off a cliff into water that you didn't even know was there part. It's exhilarating and i recommend any adrenaline junkies to try it sometime! Anyway, enjoy the extra fluffy chapter!

            I had believed that this was what I wanted. I really wanted Phil to come home with me that night. But instead, his answer shocked me:

            “Is that _really_ what you want, Dan?” he asked breathless, “Do you really want me to go home with you? I’m not the type of person for you.”

            “But…”

            “Dan, kissing is meaningless without something else to keep it alive. I’m not the right person for you. There are many other amazing people out there for you and I’m not that. We’re like fire and gasoline: we’ll never be able to mix.”

            “But you…”

            “Shh.” He shushed me with a caring voice, “It’s what I do. Flirting is what _I_ do. It’s what I enjoy doing. Kissing, I’ve kissed my fair share of people in my life, Dan, and I’m sorry but you’re no different.”

            Honestly, his words hurt me. They hurt deeper than I had expected because I suddenly had tears brimming my eyes and threatening to fall. I pulled back from Phil like he was a foreign creature and shrugged past him.

            He called for me as I rushed out of the room and out of the shop. I heard footsteps following me as I ran down the street. As I reached the end of the street, I was grabbed from behind and I screamed out. Phil calmed me down by shushing me as he stopped me from running, “Dan, listen to me. I never meant to hurt you.”

            “Yeah, well,” I said as I felt a tear leak down my cheek. I meant to continue my words until I felt lips crashing against my own again before quickly pulling away.

            “I’m damaged.” He said softly, “You don’t want a guy like me, Dan. You have such a bright and beautiful future. Don’t get involved with a guy like me.”

            “But let me figure that out.” I said suddenly, “I’m still young, I wanna make mistakes and if you’re one of them, I’m okay with that.”

            “I don’t think you understand.” He said stopping me.

            “Phil, you’re not damaged! No one is ever damaged!”

            “Dan, I have too many secrets that I need to keep hidden. I have too much baggage around here.” He said egging this on, “You don’t want to be involved with me.”

            I found myself lunging towards him in a desperate plea, “Please, let me realize that.” I said, “Let me please!”

            “Dan, no!” He screamed back suddenly.

            I stepped back and looked up at me, “I’m so sorry for acting that way.” I said, covering my mouth embarrassed. I had just acted so desperate and I’m not like that. I’ve never been like that around someone.

            “No,” Phil said with a long drawn out breath, “I warned you that once you became attracted to me, you better be prepared.”

            “What does that mean?” I asked suddenly, “Why are you saying that?”

            He shook his head, ignoring my question, “I really like you, Dan.” He said hesitantly, “More than I’ve ever found myself liking someone before.”

            I found myself smiling at him as I said, “I think I really like you too, Phil.”

            And then I was enveloped into a hug and picked up so my feet were off from the ground. I smiled harder and held onto him tightly.

            This man who I had said I hated a week ago, was now someone that I couldn’t stop thinking about.

            But little did I know, Phil wasn’t who he appeared to be…not by a long shot.

****

            It’s now been a month since then, and Phil and I have been seeing each other for about three weeks now. It took a few days of discussing feelings before we finally decided to become boyfriends. I found myself smitten with him, undeniably. Even Louise got sick of my gloating about him.

            He’s been coming over to my house after work and I’ve been enjoying his company. I found out that he loved video games and played them all the time. So I played Mario Kart with him and kicked his ass which led to us wrestling on the floor (not in a sexual way) before he attacked my mouth with kisses that left me laughing so hard I couldn’t do anything else but clutch my sides.

            I actually felt happy with him around. Something I didn’t think I could dare say before getting to know him.

            He kept helping out in the shop in the mornings and Louise loved his company as well. It made me excited to see him enter the shop, giving me his signature ‘hello kiss’ before going and working on something by himself.

            As I ogled him from the counter and Louise hit my arm to keep me from my thoughts.

            Today though, it was just Phil and I at my house. Louise took over the shop for the day and Phil had the day off so I asked him to come over. We spent most of the day cuddling on my couch, watching movies to just take up the time.

            I was snuggled into his side, breathing in the scent from his chest to calm myself down. His arm was around my shoulder and he was keeping me protected: from what, I didn’t know.

            I even had to admit though that we were taking things faster than I would have liked. But I figured that I didn’t feel uncomfortable by the pace we were going at so I didn’t voice my concerns. I’ve learned that Phil is a great guy and he’s just misunderstood by everyone at first: including myself.

            And in times like right now, I really loved having his company in this big house.

            My parent’s haven’t contacted me in about a week and it’s gotten to me. It’s not like I had made many friends in this town, in fact, I had only really met Louise and Phil. But on the flip side, I liked still having a sense of being and not having people throw themselves at me—if that’s even how I should be putting it.

            I don’t know honestly, I’m just feeling the euphoric high of snuggling into Phil’s side.

            “You’re getting sleepy,” Phil said moving my hair from my forehead and gently thumbing over the area, “You look like you’re ready to fall asleep.”

            I yawned, not even realizing before that I was tired, and snuggled in closer to him, “I guess I’m tired.” I said with a half-laugh.

            “Sleep, bear.” He said to me, calling me by the nickname he had given me after I had confessed to him that Winnie the Pooh was my favorite children’s series in a night of drunken confessions: I mean, it was mostly me confessing to him all of my life sins while he sat there and just listened. Then I promptly passed out and woke up with the biggest hangover I’d ever felt.

            Different story though…

            “Okay.” I whispered just as I shut my eyes and breathed in his scent, instantly feeling my heartbeat settle as sleep overcame my body.

****

            I awoke to find myself no longer on the couch, but now in my bed with blankets wrapped all around me. I groaned and turned onto my side, realizing the other side of the bed was warm but there was no body there.

            Phil was next to me but he’d since left.

            “Phil!” I called from the bed, feeling a rush of uneasy feelings course through my spine.

            The door to my room slowly opened and a figure walked in, not saying a word. I squinted my eyes and repeated the name, “Phil?”

            The figure suddenly rushed towards me and pushed me back onto the bed, their hands clasped on my throat. I screamed out and kicked up, trying to shove them off from me. Their face was covered in a mask and their hands were concealed in a pair of thick gloves.

            I grabbed at the wrists as I felt my throat collapse in and breathing became harsh. My eyes were beginning to fade in and out of a black trance. I continued kicking, fighting for the life in me that I didn’t know I needed so badly!

            My attacker wasn’t letting up! Their hands just clasped harder around my throat. In one final move as my vision blacked, I reached up and grabbed the mask, yanking it down and seeing the face of them…

****

            I gasped out and sat up, knocking Phil’s arm from around me. He grabbed my shoulders and yanked me back down as I began to hyperventilate. It was all so real…and it was all so horrible! There was nothing I could but just let them choke me! Why couldn’t I fight them harder? Why didn’t my body let them fight them?

            “You had a nightmare.” Phil whispered to me, “You began screaming and thrashing, I woke you up.”

            I had a few stray tears running down my cheeks but I wasn’t crying. I guess I was more or less scared. A dream had actually frightened me.

            I was terrified of something that my mind had made up as I slept.

            “Don’t let me fall back asleep.” I said to him, beginning to shake, “Please don’t let me sleep.”

            “That won’t be a problem.” Phil said softly.

            I looked up at him and furrowed my eyebrows, “What do you mean?”

            He sighed, “I was diagnosed with chronic insomnia when I was nineteen. It can’t be cured and I just don’t sleep, ever. They tried medications but it doesn’t help. I’m a creature of the night.”

            “But I thought that…”

            “The doctors tried everything, so much so that I just started lying to them.” He said with a sigh, “Right after I was diagnosed, I moved here.”

            “How old are you now?” I asked suddenly.

            He chuckled out a laugh and I felt him relax under my weight. I was practically laying completely over him, with my head on his chest and my arm and leg draped over him.

            “I’m twenty four.”

            “Oh.”

            “Not a problem, I hope?” he said with a laugh.

            “Nope!” I said before suddenly adding, “So you haven’t sleep in five years?”

            “Not exactly. Like, I cat nap. I can sleep for like five minutes at a time and then I’m up for the night. It’s not that I don’t _sleep_ , it’s just that I don’t sleep for a long time.” He paused before saying, “The longest I’ve slept in these past five years is two hours.”

            “Oh wow.”

            It was all silent between us for a moment. I was still shaking as an aftermath of the dream and my hands felt sweaty against Phil’s shirt. I was probably sweating through Phil’s clothes as well as my own, but I couldn’t care any less about it.

            “Do you wanna talk about your dream?” He asked softly.

            I shook my head, “No, I don’t want to relive it.”

            “Fair enough.”

            It was silent between us again before I spoke, “What time is it?”

            “Going for eight.” Phil said looking down at his phone.

            “I don’t want to go back to sleep so wanna go with me on a walk?”

            “Sure!” Phil said happily, “But first things first, can I go and have a smoke break?”

            I laughed and shoved him with my hand.

****

            There was something mesmerizing about the smoke that Phil was blowing from between his lips. It spiraled out and formed little clouds of nicotine in the air. Breathing in the scent of the cigarettes, I normally would have been appalled, but being with Phil, the smell just made me warm inside. Because it smelled like him.

            He was on his third cigarette and I was getting impatient with him. We were sitting on the sidewalk at the end of my street, no other traffic or people around. It was just us and the quiet peaceful air.

            “Are you almost done?” I asked him, feeling the night chill begin to creep against my skin: sending a shiver down my spine that made me shake slightly.

            “Yeah, one moment.” Phil said just as he took a long drag of the cigarette and then threw the butt on the ground and stomped it out with his right foot, the buckles on his boot clanking in the silence from the movement. He then turned to me and noticed my shivering, “Are you cold?”

            “Not really.” I answered, “It was just a cold-chill.”

            He smiled at me and stood up, placing his hand out to me for a grasp. I took his hand in my own and pulled myself up, standing again on two feet.

            “I wanna show you this place just outside of town.” Phil said suddenly, “It’s my secret place that I go to at night when I can’t sleep. Like the night after we met for the first time, I went there to think about what was going to happen. I’d really like to show you it.”

            I just nodded and smirked, “Okay.”

            He reached out and recaptured my hand in his own, linking our fingers together as he dragged me down the night streets, where the lamps only illuminated our way.

            It was silent between us as Phil slowly led us down the street until we got to a dead end road that led to a section of woods that looked like something out of a horror movie. I began to feel my heart race as Phil climbed over the guardrail that said, DEAD END- NO ENTRY PERMITTED and then stuck his hand out again as I tried to awkwardly move over the guardrail as well.

            Losing my balance, I yelped out and fell forward, being caught by Phil as my foot got caught on the steel bar. I lurched forward and held my breath as I took a moment to realize what just happened.

            “You good?” He asked and I nodded slowly.

            Regaining my composure, I continued to walk behind Phil, my heart racing in uneasy ways, as we continued down the forest: the moonlight and Phil’s phone being our guide.

            I was about to ask him where we were going until there was a sudden clearing and I gasped out, not believing what my own eyes were seeing.

            It was a cliff that dropped off into a waterfall, a pool of water down at the bottom as a cushion. It wasn’t a very big waterfall, but it was enough to be intimidating.

            It wasn’t like anything I could have ever described in my life.

            “How did you ever find this place?” I asked looking around at the amazing work of nature.

            He shrugged, “I was just walking around one night and found it. Like I said before, I go here to think.”

            And then suddenly he was striping his clothes off and I was left in shock as he rushed to the edge, screaming behind him, “And to do this!” As he launched himself off from the cliff and down into the water with a hollowing scream.

            I looked in terror as his body submerged under the water and resurfaced with a ripple. He looked up at me and laughed, “The water is perfect! Come on down!”

            “Like, jump?” I yelled back.

            “It’s the only way, princess!”

            I took a few deep breaths and stood back, contemplating this. One of two things could happen within the next few moments if I jump:

            1: I can jump and then hit the water with such force that my internal organs collapse in on themselves and I can face inevitable death.

            2: I can jump and land into the water gracefully and resurface to see Phil looking at me and then we can share a romantic kiss in the moonlight.

            I mean, the second one obviously sounds better but I’m more or less leaning towards the first one actually happening.

            But yet, I’m already stripping off my clothing and letting it fall to the ground beside me. I felt vulnerable to the air. Phil and I haven’t seen each other naked and well, I wasn’t expecting the first time for such an intimate thing to be like this.

            I edged towards the end of the cliff and gulped, feeling anxiety course through my veins, “Phil, I can’t.” I said down the cliff.

            “No, princess, you can!” He called back, “I’ll be here to catch you when you fall.”

            It’s too bad that I didn’t hear the irony in his statement at that time and how those words in just a short time would twist their meaning.

            Instead, I just nodded, feeling my face flush and my eyes water in fear, as I backed up and ran for the edge, not realizing I wasn’t on the ground anymore until I hit the water with a solid smack!  
            For a moment, I felt breathless under the water: like I was floating in a cloud. I looked around at the dark tar and felt my arms move in such little motions. That was until I looked up and saw the break in the water’s surface and gasped out with the cool air hitting me.

            I treaded water as I looked around, panicking because I wasn’t seeing Phil.

            “Phil!” I screamed out.

            My breath began to shorten more than it was.

            That was until I had an arm engulf my side and I fell into them, “I told you that you could do it.” He said to me with such a proud tone.

            I spun in the water and faced him, moving my arms in the water to keep me upright, “That was a rush.” I said to him, seeing the water vapor move off from our skin into the cool night.

            “You can always do it,” He said to me, “Never underestimate your abilities.”

            He suddenly began to move and swim towards the outer rim of the small bauble of water and he looked behind him to yell to me, “It’s shallower this way so we won’t like drown or anything.”

            I nodded with a half-smile and kicked my feet, swimming behind Phil in the shimmering liquid glass. Looking around myself, I couldn’t help but notice that the moon was perfect tonight: a full moon actually, and it shown so brightly against the water’s reflection. It was like the scene out of a movie.

            And for once, I was actually living it.

            When the water got to where we both could touch, we stood and just waded in the ripples. It was such a calming and peaceful night and this made it that much better. I had forgotten about my worries and about the nightmare I had with the attacker.

            And instead, it’s just Phil and I: Dan and Phil.

            He wrapped his arms around my waist in a surprise move and I gasped out slightly. He chuckled at me before moving forward and pressing his lips to my neck and kissing down the side. His ghost touches moved to my collarbone and I moaned out, loving the feeling he was giving me.

            I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer to me. I was growing aroused very fast from his actions and it was scaring me that we could go further than I was comfortable with.

            His lips began to track back up my jaw and I felt the cold ring hit my skin from his lip piercings and I shivered. Then his lips were suddenly on my own and we were properly kissing. I tangled my fingers into his damp hair and let his lips ravish my own.

            There was lip biting, sucking, and just general locking. But when I moaned into his mouth during a particularly steamy lip lock, I felt his hand travel down the back of thigh and my right leg was suddenly wrapped around Phil’s hip, connecting our equally hard members with a gentle caress.

            “Phil,” I said breaking away but not wanting to, “I need…”

            He nodded, pressing a kiss to my lips again, “Me too.”

            And then his hand that was on my thigh holding me in place, was suddenly wrapped around both of our members and stroking us in a steady member. I did all I could to break off the kissing so I could moan out at the sensations.

            That’s when I felt the first piercing against my turgid length. He was pierced…down there…and I couldn’t even see where. I just had to feel the pleasure from the ring. I wrapped my hand around the back of his neck as he buried his head into my neck and began sucking love marks there.

            I was too mixed into the pleasure to protest.

            The heating in my stomach began to pool and I knew the end was coming.

            I released with a loud shout of Phil’s name before I heard him grunt into my skin as his member throbbed against my own and he finished as well.

            I felt like I was going to fall over, feeling spent just from that. He let us both go and I found myself connecting our lips again in a sloppy kiss. We were both tired and it was evident with how slow our actions were.

            He pulled back, an audible pop signifying such, and he spoke, “That was amazing.”

            Our breathing was heavy against the others and I found myself having trouble catching my breath. I smiled against his lips and breathed out, “I didn’t know you were this romantic.”

            “Well,” he began, “When the punk finally has a reason to be, he’s not afraid to hide his feelings.”

            I smiled brightly against his lips before pressing a sound kiss once more.

            I was willing to continue the kissing until I heard the sound of a twig breaking in the distance and when I turned, a black silhouette was rushing the other direction.

            I gasped out and leaned closer into Phil for protection, “Phil, someone was watching us.”

            The man who had been inconspicuously watching me for the past few months without my knowledge, was suddenly in my view. And I didn’t even realize it.

**Author's Note:**

> Any and all kudos and comments are greatly appreciated! I love hearing from you all so don't be strangers! My tumblr/ twitter is princesslexi763 and i try to respond to comments as best I can!


End file.
